Yamamoto to replace Senna for British GP weekend

There is confusion in the paddock this weekend, as it appears that Sakon Yamamoto will replace Bruno Senna for the entire weekend of the British Grand Prix. The initial reports were saying this switch was only for Friday, but it now seems that Yamamoto will be driving for HRT all weekend.

Test driver Sakon Yamamoto will replace Bruno Senna for the British GP weekend

Colin Kolles confirmed this switch today, although he refused to be officially quoted ahead of the team announcement tomorrow. He said that the full report will be out shortly, most likely Friday morning. This will be the first time that Yamamoto has driven in an F1 race since the end of the 2007 season.

It is believed that HRT made this decision because they are running short of money, and Yamamoto is very wealthy and has more sponsors than Senna. His signing as a HRT test driver this year appeared to be purely for money, and not for driving skill.

If this is the case, this is disgraceful. Running Yamamoto in practice sessions is fine, where it can get the team some extra money, but this is awful for Senna, who apparently didn’t even hear of the announcement. I realise that HRT need money, but moves like this will do them no favours with the fans, and their pace cannot improve with drivers like Yamamoto instead of Senna.

Update: HRT have confirmed that this change is only for the British GP weekend, and it is a combination of financial and disciplinary matters.

It seems to be a dispute between Senna and Colin Kolles, and the temporary switch is for disciplinary reasons, as well as the extra cash it seems.
The same thing actually happened to Ayrton, oddly enough. In his first year in F1 in 1984 with Toleman, he was replaced for 1 race because of a dispute with next year’s contract.